Hi, This is something that even I was wondering about. How serious is the security threat by using an open source software? Or, it's just a baked excuse by companies and examining bodies?
Regards, Saurav Student at Brihan Maharashtra College of Commerce, Pune On Fri, Mar 21, 2025 at 9:38 AM Mujtaba Merchant <[email protected]> wrote: > I am going to share bits of this mail with the Microsoft Enterprise > Disability Team, since I have access to them thanks to my employer. Request > other members to also approach them with some feedback on Narrator. To put > some salt, apple products are accessible out of the box and do not need 3 > rd party assistive technologies to use them. > > > > *From:* [email protected] <[email protected]> *On > Behalf Of *Ashutosh Singhal > *Sent:* 20 March 2025 08:49 PM > *To:* [email protected]; [email protected]; > [email protected]; [email protected] > *Subject:* [AI] Microsoft Narrator bad condition and JAWS monopoly > > > > I would like to know outside India conditions regarding Screen Readers > permission specially in Banks and Companies. > > As we all know, Microsoft’s screen reader, Narrator, lacks many essential > features. For example, it does not support automatic language switching on > non-Microsoft platforms. If English India and Hindi (or any other Indian > language) appear together, Microsoft Narrator cannot read the text > properly—for instance, on YouTube. Additionally, it does not have a Screen > Curtain or Dim Screen feature, which is a fundamental privacy function for > screen reader users. Despite being a major company with abundant resources, > Microsoft has not prioritized these improvements. > As a result, JAWS (Job Access with Speech) holds a monopoly in the Indian > professional sector. In India, Companies, banks, and competitive exam > bodies do not permit NVDA due to its open-source nature. Since Microsoft’s > Narrator lacks important features, users often have no choice but to rely > on JAWS, which is sold at a high price. If Microsoft Narrator were > improved, employees with visual impairments in companies and banks would > not need to wait as long to obtain JAWS—a process that can take six months > to a year in some cases. Employees could simply use Narrator on their > professional computers. Likewise, competitive exam bodies could provide > laptops with Windows pre-installed, allowing students with visual > impairments to use Narrator during exams. > I urge Microsoft to focus on enhancing Narrator’s features. This would > empower individuals with visual impairments in professional and educational > settings and reduce their dependence on JAWS. Kindly repost, like and share > your thoughts on this Twitter/X Post: Ashutosh Singhal (@Sugamyata) posted > at 2:10 pm on Wed, Mar 19, 2025: > > @Microsoft @MSFTEnable Please improve #Narrator as its limited features > make @FreedomSci's JAWS a costly monopoly. In India, Many organisations > delay purchases, blocking blind employees. They reject NVDA as it's > open-source. A better Narrator can fix this! @satyanadella > ( > https://x.com/Sugamyata/status/1902279095720751415?t=0Au4C6nTRkbEhd8owgP5YQ&s=03) > > > -- > Disclaimer: > 1. Contents of the mails, factual, or otherwise, reflect the thinking of > the person sending the mail and AI in no way relates itself to its veracity; > > 2. 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AI cannot be held liable for any commission/omission based on the mails > sent through this mailing list.. > > > Search for old postings at: > http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "AccessIndia" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion visit > https://groups.google.com/a/accessindia.org.in/d/msgid/accessindia/003e01db9a16%24df2985c0%249d7c9140%24%40gmail.com > <https://groups.google.com/a/accessindia.org.in/d/msgid/accessindia/003e01db9a16%24df2985c0%249d7c9140%24%40gmail.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > -- Disclaimer: 1. Contents of the mails, factual, or otherwise, reflect the thinking of the person sending the mail and AI in no way relates itself to its veracity; 2. AI cannot be held liable for any commission/omission based on the mails sent through this mailing list.. 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